The Young Carthaginian eBook

“I am ready to go,” Malchus said, “and
will start today. What force shall I take with
me, and which of the chiefs shall I first see?”

“You had best go first to Ostragarth. He
is the most powerful of the chiefs on this side of
the Apennines. You can select from the treasury
such presents as you may choose for him and the others.
You can promise them large grants of the land of the
tribes aiding the Romans, together with a share in
the plunder of the cities. I leave you quite
free. In those respects you will be guided by
what you see they want; but any promises you may
make I will ratify. As to men I should not take
a large escort. Force will, of course, be of
no avail, and the appearance of a large number of troops
might alarm them at once. Twenty men will be
sufficient for dignity, and as a protection against
any small bodies of the hostile tribesmen you may
meet on your way; but have no frays if you can avoid
it. The mission is an important one, and its
success should not be risked merely to defeat a body
of tribesmen. Go in your handsomest armour, and
make as brave a show as you can, as my ambassador
and kinsman. Take twenty of the Carthaginian
horse; they will impose more upon the barbarians
than would the Libyans or Numidians. Take your
friend Trebon as their commander and a companion for
yourself.”

In two hours Malchus and his escort were ready to
start. As their journey would be rapid they
carried no stores with them, save three days’
provisions, which each man carried at his saddlebow,
and a bag containing a few feeds of corn for the horse.
They took with them, however, two baggage horses
laden with arms, armour, garments, and other presents
for the chiefs.

They passed rapidly across the country, meeting with
no hostile parties, for the raids of Hannibal’s
light armed horse had so terrified the people that
the villages were for the most part deserted, the
inhabitants having sought refuge in the fortified
towns. After two days’ brisk riding they
arrived at the foot of the hills, and their progress
was now slower. The village of Ostragarth lay
far up among them, and, being ignorant of the direction,
Malchus broke the troop up into parties of four, and
sent them up different valleys with orders to capture
the first native they came across, and oblige him
either by threats or promises to act as a guide to
the stronghold of the chief.

“I sincerely trust that this barbarian is friendly,
Malchus, for the country looks wild and difficult
in the extreme, and the forests which clothe these
hills are thick and tangled. On the plain we
can laugh at the natives, however numerous, and with
twenty men I would charge a thousand of them; but
among these hills it is different, one cannot find
a level spot for a charge, and, if it comes to running,
the mountaineers are as fleet as a horse on the broken
ground of their hills.”

“I agree with you, Trebon, that it would go
hard with us, and that the utmost we could hope for
would be a visit to Rome as captives. Still,
these chiefs all offered alliance to Hannibal as he
went south, and the success which has attended us
should surely bind them to our interests. They
are ever willing to join the winning side, and so
far fortune has been wholly with us.”